Liverpool Looking Lost

27:55He was getting the blame when Manchester United wasn't good. And I'm with Craig. Given the career that he has had, given the player he has shown us to be, I hated to see it as much as anyone. It was quite sad to see, actually. It really was. Physically, it kind of went a little bit as well. Just as a fact, just as a fact, it was difficult to witness. The thing about this Manchester United team, or most importantly, the thing about Michael Carrick is he's not trying to reinvent the wheel. He's just put players back in their usual positions, been good at man management, and send them out, and he's been able to turn things around as quickly as he has.

28:29And it kind of speaks to the talent. Maybe it speaks to management at the highest level. That it's about getting the right players. It's about managing those players as best you can. Michael Carrick has done that. And while, yes, we had Augie on Saturday a month ago, three or four games into Michael Carrick's managerial tenure, and he said, listen, he's given the board a problem here. And he's right because Manchester United will continue to be linked with big-name managers, understandably, given who they are as a football club. But Michael Carrick can only do what he's asked to do, and that's lead the team out on a weekend.

29:02Lots of times, teams have kind of helped in that. How many times have teams had a man sent off and Manchester United made line work of 10 men? But that's not on Michael Carrick. Manchester United are winning games. They're genuinely in the top four race. I don't think anybody challenges whether they finish top four. and that, given where they were, when he took over, when Ruben Amarim left, I don't think many people outside of maybe you, Alexis, thought that that was a possibility. And here we are. To credit to him. And all he can do is continue to give those higher-ups more and more headaches.

29:41There's still a bit to go in this season, obviously. So there's still time for ups and downs. We might not finish as well as it's gone at the moment. We don't know. But if it does, he can go into some sort of interview stroke boardroom meeting and he can use the sort of analogy of, well, you've tried all the big names. You went for David Moyes off of Fergie. You went for Mourinho. You went for Van Gaal. You went for Ruben Amarim, who was reportedly the bee's knees in Portugal and blah, blah, blah, which clearly he wasn't. Maybe he'll come back somewhere else a different time, possibly. But he can use that and say, look, you've been down that road before.

30:20but he's also been down the road of giving Ole Gunnar Solskjaer the job. So it's a little sort of conflicting and not an easy decision. But, you know, in terms of what he's doing, and Shaq's right, in some sense, you know, the simplicity of it goes back to what a lot of the older managers did. We see Guardiola and some of these managers now, you know, they're all inverting this player and inverting that player. In some sense, the 25 years of success and building under Fergie was built on simplicity. They tried to sign the best players. They played a simple four at the back. You know, they had grafters in midfield.

30:56They had guys up front that could score goals. And it was good football. And there was tactical changes here and there. There was good substitution. There was Fergie time. There was always a few minutes at the end. But it wasn't, you know, for Sir Alex Ferguson, as great as he was as a coach, it wasn't rocket science. You know, it was man managing players. And as Shaq said, it was putting round pegs and round holes. And in some senses, I hate the word disciple, but as a bit of a disciple having played under Sir Alex, Michael Carrick has gone back to that. Look, where can I get the best out of Bruno Fernandes?

31:27How can I get the best out of Casemiro? What centre-half will I select that's going to head the ball away in the penalty box? We talked about Van Dijk struggling this season, Harry Maguire. He's not Virgil van Dijk, he's not Rio Ferdinand, he's not John Terry, but he goes and gets that big head on the ball when it comes in the box. That's simplicity and leadership. United are doing that pretty well at the moment. I say Villavs kind of lost their way a little bit, but still, that was a big win for them. Frank, you enjoying watching Michael Carrick's Manchester United as well? I did. I do. I do because I know it goes back to what I've learned about Manchester United.

32:09Some club wants to conquer everything and they go forward and they go vertically and they put the players and Michael put the players in the right position. And Fernandez, Bruno Fernandez is the first example, you know, being a real number 10, giving assist. And Casemiro, he looks 10 years younger than he used to look since he signed for Manchester United. So there is a reason why it works, because Michael Carrick is using all the tools in the right spot. And the spirit is there. He knows the house, but he knows how to put it on. And I didn't see anybody not doing the job right now where every, you know, remember what we have seen before he arrived.

32:50And Robinho Morin should be, I don't know, you know, stunned by what he sees. Because really, it's completely the opposite with what we have seen for a long time with Manchester United. And really, right now, if there is one decision to make, yeah, you have to keep him. You know, you have to carry on, if I may say. because really the guy is exceptional. You like it. I know you liked it, Shaka. The thing is the guy, how do you want to take somebody else when you see that? I mean, there are no many games left and I don't see him not doing that until the end. So therefore, if I'm at the board, I say, well, what do you want to look for somebody else?

33:34You know, the guy understood everything, how to make it work. And it works. Manchester United third. You know, who expected that? Even Alexi Nunes couldn't expect that. She's so happy. And they're there. They do the job. So carry on. I've always said, I don't know how much the guys agree. I've always, and I still believe it to this day, even in the modern game. Managing to me is somewhere in the Don Hutchinson region of percentages. Managing in the region for me is somewhere in the region of 70-80 % man management and 10, 20, 30 % coaching. Maybe not even that. Maybe not even 30 % coaching. It's about the simplicity of the game and understanding players.

34:20If you can't man manage your players and you've got 20 guys coming in who are pretty annoyed with you and annoyed about what you're doing and annoyed about what you're saying, they're not going to play well. When you have Ruben Amarim coming out with the garbage, I don't know if I'm a head coach, I don't know if I'm a manager, I haven't got this player from my system, I haven't got that player from my system, I need this, I need that, I need the next thing. That's not in any way, shape or form going to get your squad, not your team, your squad to perform the best for you. And so that side of it will never change.

34:57And the best in the business have always been great man managers. And in some sense, Guardiola, of course, is a great coach. But I also think down the years he's been a good man manager. You look at Ferguson. You look at Wenger. You look at Mourinho on his palm. You look at Carlo Ancelotti. They don't, certainly Ancelotti and others, they don't coach the backside off of players. They don't. They do not. But they make sure they work damn hard at the ones that are not in the team that they're as happy as they can be. Because I might need that guy. You know, the guys that are playing are generally quite happy.

35:32but what about the other 9 or 10 or 11 or 12? How do you make sure they're almost happy as the rest of them but they're not playing? How do you make them feel like that because I know I'm going to need them? And the best guys, and I kind of sense it at the moment and I don't want to get ahead of ourselves. Carrick's doing a decent job with that at the moment but the guy that was there before him did a terrible job of it. He called out everybody and maybe sometimes some of them were slacking behind the scenes but he called out all these players that weren't playing and he called out the players that were playing and he moaned and groaned about everything and then he wondered why Manchester United were struggling and people were asking him if he was going to be sacked almost on a weekly basis because he just came in and he got it all wrong.

36:18You spoke about it earlier. I think the turnaround of Benjamin Sesko epitomises what Michael Carrick has brought to this team. We could talk about the results and everything but to sum it up in a player I think Benjamin Sesko and the tune he's getting out of him kind of sums up Michael Carrick as a man manager and his ability. So he's doing that with Sesko. He could do that with everybody else in the starting XI. These are the results. I mean, you worked under, even Frank, I'm sure as well, before I worked under a lot of big managers. But I worked for two or three years under Jim Smith, who's not with us anymore, who was well-renowned in the game as a character.

36:55And Shaq worked for a big period under Harry Redknapp. two guys that were huge on man-managing and what that meant to teams. And I don't think, you know, when people nowadays want to... Most of them are into all this nerdy stuff, and that's fine. You want to go on all your data-driven stuff and your stats, and most of them think that the ball is square and the game is reinvented. It's not. It's not. And I'm not just talking about Man United, talking about a lot of teams here that the pitch has not changed size. The ball is still around. It's still 11 v 11. And if you don't have the man management skills with elite level players, you're going to fail.

37:41And it's quite simple. I was going to say something about respecting the ball there, but we're going to get to that later. We're going to get to that later. Don't worry. Don't worry. We'll save that. We'll save that. Don't worry. It is coming. Well, it was a big day for Manchester United and an even bigger day for their captain Bruno Fernandes. He broke a 26-year-old record held by none other than David Beckham about assist. He has 16 now in a single season, overtaking Bex's 15. O 'Reilly Auto Parts can help take the guesswork out of your check engine, ABS, or maintenance light with O 'Reilly Veriscan.

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39:19You're going for a run, grabbing a coffee, scrolling anything other than a just checking in message. Because your TurboTax expert is handling it and keeping you in the loop. So this tax season, get your best possible outcome and every dollar you deserve without the guesswork. Visit TurboTax.com today to learn more. Real-time updates only in iOS mobile app. Only available with TurboTax full-service experts. Barcelona beat Sevilla 5-2 at the Camp Nou. Rafinha scored a hat-trick and Gemma Soler got to catch up with him after the game. Talk to me about the penalties. It seemed like at Newcastle you gave the penalty to Yamal.

40:00Today you had it for yourself and took a panenka. You're still on 100 % success rate on penalties. Well, I've been trying different penalty techniques in training to try to confuse the goalkeepers. They won't know what to expect. That'll help me score more goals. And Lamine and I are always talking during the games. We understand each other very well.

40:29There are moments when one player needs it more than the other. We've been doing this well. In the Newcastle match, I think Lamine really needed the goal and was very confident.

40:45I wasn't that confident in the game. That's how we'll do it this season, and I think it's going well.

40:55Let's have a look at the top half of the La Liga standings, because at the top is exactly where you will find Barcelona. They started the day just one point ahead of Real Madrid, but now they have stretched it to four points ahead. Craig, big win for Barcelona, but what do you make of what Rafinha had to say? He wasn't even that confident. He looked confident. Well, I think there is, to me, looking like an ethic at Barcelona, particularly with the midfield to front players, that it's about the team. It's not always about the individual, even though they have some superb individuals. I mean, Jamal and, you know, so Danny Almo to do it, Fermin Lopez, Lewandowski, Ferran Torres has been struggling and Rafinha.

41:35But it seems to me that it matters not a jot if they win 4-5 now who's got the goals. It's about the big picture. Whereas at times, Real Madrid, obviously it seems to have been more about the egos and who's getting what. And I think that's down to Hansi Fleck. Now this game against Sevilla today was pretty easy for them. Sevilla have been struggling. but I could see, although they're favourites, I could see Newcastle giving them some problems in midweek with the pace Newcastle have on the counter-attack. The problem Newcastle have got, particularly away from home, is how do you stop this front line?

42:16Laminia Mal got arrested, he got 10 minutes at the end. Rafinha's got a hat-trick. Danny Olmo's back in the score sheet. So how do you, as a Newcastle team, stop that? But at the moment, they're in the driving seat for the La Liga title. Obviously, Real Madrid won yesterday. So it is still relatively tight and there's a classical in May. So there's still some hurdles to get over. But I think they're in a pretty good position in La Liga. Whether they're going to be strong enough defensively to go all the way in the Champions League, I think that's a bigger question. Shaq, how do you feel about facing this Barca in a couple of days' time?

42:54Not great, in short, in all honesty. I thought, this is a severe team that I'm not having a good time right now, but a severe team that, was it October last year when these two men got the better Barcelona? They thought they were back in the derby too that we were on when we wrote them off at halftime. So now all of a sudden, on this showing, I thought Barcelona looked really good today. Lots of players, and while you are allowed to wrestle Mignamal, you welcome back in Gavi. You have players coming back in and it just seems to be clicking for Hansi Flick exactly at the right time. I spoke about defensively how they looked and coping with Sevilla's attack.

43:41A little more orthodox and that's as kind as you can be to Barcelona, kind of given the highlight that you've seen. And you just wonder if things are just coming together just at the right time for them. I still think as of right now, they go on and win La Liga title, whether they can do similarly with the Champions League. And with Craig, I'm not as convinced of that. I think there are better teams in European football. But there's no doubt that 12 months ago, we were talking about PSG, some of their struggles in the first half of the season, things clicking just right at the right time. We just wonder if that's going to be Barcelona's story this time around.

44:19I think it's unlikely, but if you're Newcastle, you're hanging on to the fact that you may have a stellar performance defensively and the one thing Newcastle have got that if they didn't have it I would say they'd have no chance they get a lot of pace in the side they get a lot of pace in the forward areas both in the wide areas and if they play Anthony Gordon through the middle again and Vogue De Mata a little deeper that would be some salvation to me if I was Eddie Howe to say if we can just have a really solid midfield and backline we possibly might get them on the counter. But that's me. I'm stretching it a little bit because they have to stop all these great players.

44:57But you have to believe that that's going to be your opportunity. And there's no doubt the Alangas, the Barnes, the Gordons running into that space is something for Hansi Flick and Barcelona to think about. I also thought when Laminya Mahal said playing at St. James' Park, every time we get the ball it's as though you stole something. You've got three players on you. And I think that just kind of set up exactly how Newcastle are going to approach a second leg. You know this is going to be a high-tempo, close the space down as quickly as you can, like you stole something. That's the energy that Newcastle are going to bring here a second time around because it had an effect, bar the late penalty.

45:37I thought Newcastle were deserving of at least that one goal advantage. Well, if Newcastle someway, somehow managed to get a win at the camp now, they would have done something that nobody else has been able to do there this season. Barcelona have played 10 games there since the newly renovated doors opened, and they have won all 10. Plus, they average about three goals per game in that. Amazon Hub Delivery wants to partner with your business. Help your business. Help your neighbors. Discover a new stream of income for your business when you partner with Amazon Hub Delivery. You and your team will deliver Amazon packages to customers in your neighborhood on a schedule that works for you.

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47:35All right, now let's talk about the Chelsea men because they lost to Newcastle, but all everyone was talking about is this. Huddlegate is what they're calling it as referee Paul Tierney was caught in the middle of a pre-match Chelsea player huddle. Right. Let's hear from Liam Rossiniar on this incident. I'm disappointed. There's more focus and emphasis on the things that don't matter. I'm going to make it really clear. I want to protect my players. I'm respectful to the game. My players made a decision that they wanted to be around the ball to respect the ball. and show unity and leadership. That is not my decision.

48:12That was a decision between a leadership group and a team. There is nothing that they're doing with that huddle that is disrespectful to the opposition. And JL was amazing. Before the game, it wasn't me. We had a meeting with the referee. My assistant goes in. The first thing he talks about is our huddle. And he says about when I complained about Arsenal being in our half. It wasn't the goalkeeper coach that was in our half. And people who were at that game at Arsenal know why I said, what I said. We're not being disrespectful to the opposition. If Paul had focused more on his job, which was to make the right decision, we have a penalty today.

48:48I don't think anybody in this room can say that Volta Marda doesn't kick Cole Palmer down in the box. I'll be speaking to PGMOL. I'll be speaking to the refs and just trying to get an understanding of why that happened today. Alright, let's bring in our Frank Le Buffon this one too but Craig, I'm just going to open the floor to you It got worse last night as these quotes came out because we did the show yesterday and then it just evolved

49:19There's not enough Kool-Aid on the planet at the moment to keep this Chelsea dressing room going There's not a big enough straw to keep him Liam Rossini fool with the Kool-Aid because they're all drinking it. If he's saying his players are taking it upon themselves, they're all at it. They're all at it. I mean, what kind of nonsense. And I said from day dot when he came in, as soon as his first interview, and I don't know the guy, Shaq and I work, I've worked with his dad. Dad's a lovely guy, Leroy. Straight, simple. I don't know where this has come from. This is somebody trying to be too clever.

49:59And at his very first interview, when he got the job, he could smell it. As soon as his first sentence came out of his mouth, he went, you can smell this, it's going to be a car crash. Not in terms of results, in terms of rhetoric. When he talks about my players wanting to huddle around the ball because they wanted to respect the ball, what kind of crap is that? I mean, seriously. I've never heard so much nonsense in all my life. We used to do a huddle at Celtic, but not around the centre circle or a ball. They used to just huddle. And it was a Celtic thing. They'd done it for years, just right before the game started and it got the crowd going.

50:40But this yesterday was just pathetic. And this rhetoric... And I'll tell you one thing with Liam Rossini, right? You can complain all he wants to PGO about Tierney, Paul Tierney. You can complain about this. Not once, certainly in these clips, and maybe he did mention it. And if he did, I stand corrected. I've not heard him once talk about his back four when Newcastle scored. His back four were all over the place. But yet we're focusing on the referee and he's focusing on the huddle. My players, let this sink in, my players wanted to respect the ball. That's some amount of Kool-Aid they're drinking.

51:23It's incredible. I don't know what it's laced with, but whatever it is, it's making them all go a little doolally. Frank? Well, the thing is, you know, it's not really a problem for me as long as you win games after, you know, and you show, you know, desire to respect the ball and the football. And what I've seen yesterday from the Blues is not what I'm expecting from them, especially on the very important game like Leeds today. Yesterday they played against Newcastle. And so therefore, you see that everybody talks about the huddle and yeah, it looks stupid. And the comment from Liam Rossignor is not being accepted because of what we have seen on the field.

52:09I don't care about what they do. They can do whatever they wanted, you know, hug the coach, the referee, sorry, the ball, do something, you know, but whatever they want to do. As long as for 90 minutes, we see Warriors, we see something. We didn't see much yesterday. That was kind of the worst game that I've seen from Chelsea since, well, for a long time. And it's why we can be a little bit upset because they were pedestrian. They were keeping the ball. They don't try anything. And that was worthless 90 minutes. And it's why we don't accept the other, let's say, that can be a good idea. I don't have any problem with that.

52:45If they stick together and they work together and they show they are wires and that's fine. but we see the other and after we see nothing so it looks a little bit ridiculous PSG took five off them and he talked about the XG off the bucket anyway we have an update on the goal because the producer just sent me a quote he did say it was a tactical issue but he said it was a tactical issue because they have a different way of pressing a new way of pressing

53:17there's nobody else on the planet presses like this it's just a new way nobody's ever thought about it. Nobody. I was at the Paris de France and for an hour I didn't see a difference between Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea. I know. You know? And it's until Jürgen Senn made that stupid mistake like three others Donnarumma, All Black and Kinski, of course. And Xhaka, I think, had a dreadful midweek. But that's something I don't understand. But until Jürgen Senn made that stupid mistake and Chelsea were almost better than Paris Saint-Germain. We say better. They were in a better way. I could feel the fans were going down where Paris Saint-Germain, the atmosphere was going down.

54:00And I said, well, Chelsea is getting up. And I was talking with big Paris Saint-Germain fans and they were saying, yes, we are in danger until Jürgen Saint did that. So it's always, and I know Lian Roussignor has been criticized because they lost 5-2, but what a coach can do if a goalkeeper makes, or any player, because I don't want to aim that or target a goalkeeper. But if a player makes a big mistake, how responsible a coach is, I don't know. I don't know. Maybe they could have done better, but it doesn't matter. Yeah, they lost 5-2. Maybe they should have parked the bus at the end of the game.

54:37But it's not only Liam Rossignor's mistakes. Just quickly, as far as Huddlegate goes, I don't think anybody's covered. I love how you bought into it, Shaq. Yeah. Huddlegate. I don't think anybody cover themselves in any kind of glory throughout, whether we're talking the players, the referee, or indeed Lear and Mersinia in his comments. As far as Chelsea's performance goes as former Newcastle player, I thought it was all right. I thought, I don't know, I have no issue at all with the performance. He'll take that all day, will you? Keep it up, I say. That's what happens when you press in new ways that nobody...

55:17Yeah. I mean... What's that line from the Starship Enterprise? I can't remember what it is there. Oh, my days. Alright, well... Something about a planet out there. Go carry on, I can't remember. Well, Frank, Liam Rossini was also angry about a penalty shout. He felt that there should have been a penalty right here. What do you think?

55:42Nah. Nah, for me, no. It's too light. is really too light. No, no, no. It's even more Cole Palmer stepping on Voldemort's foot. He steps on Voldemort. So, yeah, so, no, no, it's too light. You cannot complain about that, you know. I mean, we see penalties right now. They're absolutely, this nonsense, but really, it would have been absolutely unfair to get a penalty from that. All right, well, I'm pretty sure they'll be talking a lot more about Huddlegate on the next edition of the Gav and Jules podcast. A fresh edition is coming your way in 24 hours. Do you know what the scariest sound to hear on a factory floor is?

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57:01Go to maintainx.com slash sports. That's maintain and the letter x dot com slash sports. Quick time out. some breakfast intel you want to know about. Kodiak frozen power waffles and flapjacks are built for busy mornings. Heat it, eat it, and you're out the door. No long prep, no complicated game plan. They're packed with 12 to 14 grams of protein per serving, a good source of fiber, and crafted with 100 % whole grains, not refined white flour. So you're getting something that actually fuels you. And there's depth on the roster. Buttermilk and vanilla, blueberry, chocolate chip, even gluten-free options.

57:42Breakfast that delivers, snack that delivers. Find Kodiak frozen waffles and flapjacks in the frozen aisle at your local grocery store. They're the ones with the bear on the box. All right, look at that. Football America's coming your way tomorrow. I guess I'll be saying his name some more. I know, you will be saying his name some more. I actually didn't even know I was on either. But look at that. Shaq and I are back along with Hercules Gomez, 8.30 p.m. Eastern time, you know where. Yeah, they're still using that picture. when Shaq was trying to grow that beard. That was a very beardly beard.

58:12It was a very healthy looking beard. I just wanted to respect the desk. We're going to respect the desk some more because we're not going anywhere. Extra Time is next where we'll respect your questions. No, we won't.

58:28All right, welcome into Extra Time. Alexis Dias here with Shaq Ahissap, Craig Burley and our Frank LaBeouf respecting all the questions. You didn't know you were on football magazine? I was just joking. Why? I come in today and Alexis is legging it around Building 3. Shaq has never seen me move that fast. The Jamaican in here came out. Yeah, I was. She was late. She was late. She was late for the Barcelona pre-show. Oh, you were dead. It wasn't my fault, though. It wasn't my fault. I was here early, but there was a little blunder in makeup scheduling. Highly left around Building 3. It was so funny.

59:01Bags in hand. Was she fast? Yeah. Was she fast? She's Jamaican. If there was any doubt. Yeah, of course. She's Jamaican. I proved it today. You're from the Caribbean. Yeah. You're hardly the fastest thing on two legs. Oh, it's because he makes up with it in length. You would have made a good fast bowler. I was a good fast bowler. See? Craig appreciates some cricket. Yeah. You'd be a good fast bowler. He starts telling us about how he played basketball for Scotland and all. Just move on. Just move on. Just move on. Just move on. Just move on. Okay. Could have been in the NBA, me. You could have.

59:35Oh, boy. All right. Oh, boy. Let's start with the first question. Football often weeds out players who are talented but do not have the will to put in the work to become pros. Did you witness this growing up through the youth systems? That someone had the talent but just not the work ethic? Yeah, well, I saw it a lot. You do see it a lot. I can't remember his name now, but I remember when we were at Newcastle, we had, I think it was the under-15, and I'm not sure if he played for England in the 17s, youth goalkeeper in our academy. And for a lot of kids just kind of getting in the academy, at times it just kind of feels like the be-all and end-all and not recognizing that it's got so much more to do with that.

1:00:24Or maybe as an England goalkeeper, he feels, yeah, it's just going to be inevitable that he's going to progress and be playing for his team before he knows. and know that from the time you started to believe that, you believe your own hype, you're going to get found out. And suffice it to say, you never made great. When I was at Chelsea in the youth team between the age of 16 and 18, a lot of guys came through and made it, like Frank Sinclair, Eddie Newton, Jason Cundey went to Tottenham, Graham Stewart went to Everton. There was quite a lot. Nathan Blake was in the side. That youth team went on to play for Blackburn and Wales.

1:01:03I won't mention there but it was a few lads who had an opportunity like they would have at other clubs and I'm sure it was the same and they had talent and they had a chance like the rest of us over a two year period to prove themselves to get a professional contract which is what you're trying to do now some of the lads weren't good enough and were told they didn't make it and were released but some of the lads wanted to and a bit of it was homesickness which I can understand because I had a little bit of that myself but some of them just didn't have the drive to go through that period and just wanted to go back to Wales or Ireland or Scotland because it was too much for them.

1:01:41And I think you have to have that willpower to get through that period understanding the opportunity that you have. And I saw quite a few that really had a chance to go through the youth team into the professional ranks and then, of course, from there there's no guarantee but that gives you the springboard. and several of them just made a decision that it was too much for them and wanted to go home. And lo and behold, almost every one of them went on to play at a very low level or even just packed the game in itself. So I saw a lot of it and it's hard to blame people for doing that, particularly when people are away from home at 16, 17.

1:02:24But sometimes that comes down to the mental side of it. you're not mentally strong enough to go through it you're probably not going to make it when you get there anyway. Frank what about you? Yes we know when I was 18 and a half I did my two years at the academy of Toulon and they didn't have a room for anybody for the 11 players in the same situation that me to go on almost professional contract and they didn't have any room so they sacked all of us like in June, so no way we could find another club, another professional club or another academy. So we are all sacked. But one player had a chance to go to Rams, and he went there, and he came back home sick in September because it was too cold.

1:03:15He wasn't in his place. We were in the south of France, and he wanted to stay there. It drove me crazy. And that guy never became a football player, of course. He gave up his career after to stay in South of France and I had to fight two more years to get back into the business But I didn't understand his decision. I mean when you have a chance to find another club you go for it and As Craig did you know some people it is too strong for them They don't want to move they want to make the effort and I was ready to sacrifice everything for that He wasn't so that's why maybe I became a football player and he never did.

1:03:52If I had a chucked it. If I didn't have the stomach for it and I'd have gone back to Scotland or whatever, I'd never have met Frank. You never would have met Frank or any of us. Life would have been good. You'd be in the NBA. You'd be in the NBA. Craig would be in the NBA, already living here. Don't listen to him. Don't listen to the ridicule. Just don't. Next question then, shall we? Because it's a start bench drop. Bruno Fernandes, Kevin De Bruyne or David Beckham? Got in the pump. I'd start De Bruyne. Bench Beckham. Yeah. Drop Bruno Fernandes. Yeah. Bruno just beat Beck's record. Exactly the same.

1:04:37Okay. Craig? Exactly the same for me. All right. There you go. What about you? How would you do it? That's definitely been sent in from a Man United fan who was hoping that I'm pretty sure De Bruyne is a Manchester United fan. De Bruyne would be out of the business. We don't need my opinion. No, we do. I would start Beckham. Bench De Bruyne up. I'd have come up with some sort of argument. Next question though. Should Liverpool have replaced Arnaz Lott months ago? No, I think that's unfair. I really think that's unfair. As much as they've struggled, I think that is. And I don't think they'll replace him in the summer.

1:05:22But I think, I don't think there's any doubt if they have a really sluggish start to next season. I mean, things may happen in the summer. I don't know. I think it's unlikely. But I think if they have a bad three or four months at the start of next season, there's going to be a lot of jeopardy, particularly if they spend in the summer, which they may. Frank?

1:05:45Well, it would have been harsh, I would say, but understandable because of what we have seen the last months of the year before even if they won the the title so you could have smell it and say well you know what's going wrong you know they're not getting better and better and you see the beginning of the season so you could have done it but everybody would have to say wow what a what a fast decision and a harsh decision so So it's better to wait until it goes very bad like that. Nobody's going to complain about it. All right, next question. There may be a clamber for Xabi Alonso, you know, with all the sort of links to the club and the fact he's out of work and, you know, his relationship with Florian Verts and one or two other things.

1:06:30So there could be that in the summer, but I don't know. Next question is for Shaq. Shaqa, goalkeeper's question. Bayern's three first-team goalkeepers are out injured. and even their under-19 goalkeeper is injured as well. So, Bayern will likely play their fifth-choice keeper who is 16 years old against Atalanta. Have you ever experienced anything like this? Not that bad in injury lists, no. No, no. And you're having to play a 16-year-old in the Champions League. What a Vincent Kompany called you and said, I know you're... Just boring. I'm trying to get the right words here. I know you're not really on my radar.

1:07:12A little sluggish these days. I'd be harbouring a bit of arthritis. Oh, you sleep a lot. Sleeps a lot, goes on holiday a lot. Oh, yeah. But would you come back, you know? I have a question. Get the gloves on. With Frank's question. I just think all these questions in one. Yeah, I have a better question because we know that's a stupid comment from Craig, but whatever.

1:07:40Look at him. He's a fine specimen. My question, do you think Bayern, Vincent Campani would ask his defender to play from the back with a 16-year-old defender playing for the first time in Champions League? No, I hope not. Mind you, they are 6-1 up. I was going to say, they have a cushion. I hope they don't play from the back when I'm in goal. So you're considering it? Yeah. As long as it doesn't clash with any of my time-off requests. I was going to say any of your shows, but of course. There's a few of them in, by the way. He's got a couple more holidays coming up. Ask the last question. Next question.

1:08:19Once again, Liverpool struggles with a late goal curse under Arne Slott, resulting in their highest ever single campaign record for such late game losses. Should they create a special coach for stoppage time goal prevention? There's coaches for everything these days. Oh, boy. Craig? No. No. They need anti-fuggy time. They need anti-fuggy time. That's true. Frankie? They have to shorten the game, maybe. They need to have to change the day. They need to wake up. Is that not what Sabozlai said today? Yeah, Sabozlai said they need to wake up. They need to wake up. Might have been like that all year, though, haven't they?

1:08:56Final question now. So according to yesterday's panel, the referee got it right on the field but got it wrong after the game when he said he shouldn't have sent up Luis Diaz. I'm still convinced and I've watched it again and I'm not going to watch it again. I've watched it enough. It was a dive. I'm still convinced that

1:09:20Luis Diaz goes to, he's thrown himself over and then he pokes his right leg out to the goalkeeper. Yeah. That's my take on that, right? So it's a dive. I disagree. Xhaka's been watching it over and over to the end. I think Luis Diaz and stretching for the ball actually clips his own heel and starts to go over. So it's nothing for me. It's neither a dive nor a foul. So the referee's wrong? What do you referee get? The referee's setting him off. Of course, yeah, he's wrong. It was nothing. No, the referee was wrong to come out and say... Yeah. Oh, he fell because of the win. He fell because of the win.

1:09:58He was stretching and then clipped his own heel. So he went over. It wasn't a dive. Come on. He kept his own heels. Xhaka, you were... I didn't know you were so naive, you know. You don't know forward players. You know, the cheaters. I'll have you know, Frank. You know what he did? I was a pretty mean striker back of my day. I know, I know. Yes, yes. I know, but I don't know why you're going that way. Because we all know, and Craig explained it very well, he goes for the foul. He knows he won't get the foul if he doesn't touch the goalkeeper. So he goes, and his leg goes right, and touches. Watch it again, Frank.

1:10:32When he got the free kick. Craig won't watch it. I ain't talking to Craig. Watch it again. He's stretching and then as he's coming back up, clips his own heel and that is what sends him down. I stand by that. I rest my case, Your Honor. Okay. We have to agree to disagree. Alright, we'll all agree to disagree. Time for another holiday. You're not wrong. Don't worry, he's got one booked in. You're not wrong about that. He's got one booked in indeed. Alright, ESPN FC will be back tomorrow. Tomorrow we are available seven days a week. Stevie Nichol will be back from his geriatric concert in time to weigh in on that Liverpool result.

1:11:11Now for some bonus content. Here's the postgame from our Barcelona-Seville coverage. All right, let's welcome in our Luis Garcia. Luis, 5-2. I mean, that was, I did say I thought you guys were being a bit conservative with only giving the two and three goals. But how do you think Hansi Flick will be feeling after this one? Yeah, I think he must be happy, of course, for the way that the game is being played. The first 45 minutes, it was under control of Barcelona. They created chances. They scored those two goals. But in the second half, I think it was even a little bit better. They controlled even not giving a chance to Sevilla that I think they gave away this game.

1:11:50They were more focused on the next game. They are going to be very important for them in the action of being relegated next year. And Barcelona just giving a rotation, just a half-time giving some press to Pedri. That is going to be very needed in the mid-week game. I was surprised that Rafinha spent so much time on the field and much more when that activity that he's got, that he's running and chasing the ball all around. And that looks like it looks sharp. Again, with the fitness 100%. But he's one of those players who is going to be very important from now until the end of the season because he's the leader, because he's the player who, when he's not on the field, the team feels it.

1:12:29But overall, I think it was a very good performance. Three points. We saw the Camp Nou a little bit more filled up with more support. That's also very important for the club. In a very important day of election, so we'll have to wait and see who is the new chairman of the club. But again, very good result. Stay on the top of the table. Keep the momentum and get back to confidence on the midweek game, I guess, Newcastle. that this boost of winning today is going to be also very important in the mental side. Ale, how important was it for Barca after Real Madrid won yesterday to not just keep the gap to one point, to get it back to four points, especially heading into Champions League?

1:13:08Yeah, and that's the game we're playing now when it comes to Barcelona and Real Madrid. They're looking at each other and it's kind of like, what are you doing? What do we need to do? And there have been moments this season in which we were not certain as to what each one of these teams was going to do. But as of late, we're finding more certainty from both Barcelona and Real Madrid. So Real Madrid did yesterday what we expected them to do against Elche. And Barcelona then did today what we expected them to do against Sevilla. I think the rotations and the fact that you're able to rest people is something that, in his mind, Hanson Flick would have appreciated, given the absences that they have had due to injury, that they're able to bring players in and out, that the level of play doesn't drop.

1:13:55All those things are important. I was a little surprised. And I know what the reasoning is from Hansi Flake. I was a little surprised that you actually felt the need to bring La Miniamar on the field at all. The game was fully in control at that point. They didn't need anything from La Miniamar. He would probably say, look, it's like a training session for La Miniamar. I tell you, for rest purposes, I tell you what's even better than a training session. No training at all. A break. Yeah, give him a full break. And again, nothing actually happened. It's not like he got injured because of it, so maybe I'm making a big deal out of nothing.

1:14:31I'm just suggesting that if you get these opportunities to rest the players and you had taken that opportunity because he was on the bench for a reason and the game doesn't call for his presence, then leave him there, comfortable, right there, with his jacket and his blanket on. Hey, just taking care of him because he's going to be the one that's going to take care of you, Hansi Flick, when you need him. I didn't think there was a need for him to be on the field. Hansi Flick felt different. Again, maybe it's not a big deal. It's just a minor detail. And those are the things that we have to talk about in this game because otherwise it's just Barcelona were dominant and that's not a surprise.

1:15:07And that's exactly what we expected. Luis, what about you? Did you have any issue with Hansi Flick bringing on Laminya Mal even though the game was firmly in their hands at that point? Yeah, but not even LaMilla Mal wanted to be there. If you have a look to the way he played today with the intensity. And yeah, intention of trying to hurt the Serie A. He grabbed the ball, came here, passed the ball. Oh, they pushed me a little bit. Because he knows how important it is the midweek game, even that he's so young. So yeah, I am 100 % with Ali. I don't understand why to push and bring it on. Because it's not about that you're going to pick an injury on the muscle.

1:15:42But you can resist Van Oat, you can twist an ankle, something that can prevent you being 100 % on the midweek game. And again, against Newcastle, you need all your best players in top form. And just bring it on because sometimes they say that, you know, run around, keep on the rhythm of the competition. Yeah, but there was no rhythm today. There was no need to bring him in because the game was already over halftime. So, yeah, I think it was risky. It went well, so nothing to say. But sometimes the kind of decision, I don't know why they made it. But, yeah, I'm not a coach, so that's why I'm never going to be a coach.

1:16:19Oh, Luis, give yourself a bit more credit there. He's not going to be a coach. He's going to be a decision maker. He's a decision maker. He's a sporting director. Never mind a coach. He's in the executive box. He's in the executive box. But, Luis, you've been out there as well in a Barcelona shirt. Someone else who we absolutely would love to see play every single game is Pedri. but we all know that you have to be careful with him. I'm sure Spain as well is keeping an eye on how Hansi Flick uses him. He got 45 minutes today. What did you make of how Hansi Flick used him today? No, I think that's the way that we were all expecting.

1:16:54You bring it on, you keep on around, but in the moment you receive a knock in the first 45 minutes. And I think that is when Hansi Flick said, OK, OK, that's good enough. You can come down and sit down next to me. So that because that's the intention. I mean, if the game needed, And I think the Hansi Flair understood that you can just bring all the new players. You've got a just very young kid on the right side, young center backs. So you've got people involved that you want to keep a little bit of the structure in the middle of the park with Dani Olmo, with Bernal. That he's been outstanding once again.

1:17:25So you want to keep that structure. But once you are ready, go ahead and you can see that Sevilla is not going to hurt you anymore. So, yes, bring it on and rest him. That's why we were talking about LaMilla Mal getting involved. or even Rafinha to be on the field for such a long time. All right. Well, before a ball was even kicked in this fixture, with all due respect to Sevilla, we knew that majority of Barcelona's eyes would be on their next game in the Champions League against Newcastle. Let's show you what happened in the first legacy. So with all due respect to Sevilla, but we don't respect you.

1:17:54Is that what you're saying? Not that we don't respect you. No, not we. But sometimes priorities, priorities. 86 minutes is where we pick this one up because this is where Newcastle would get the lead. Ronald Araujo was out of position. Rafinha allows Harry Vance to run in behind him. Good combination down the right-hand side. Joan Garcia cannot keep it out. But never say die with Barcelona because they would be awarded a penalty after Dani Olmo was taken down in the box here by Willock. It's a dip of the shoulder. It's actually Malik Tiao who takes him down. It is a penalty and Laminya Mal takes on the responsibility and does so perfectly.

1:18:321-1. 1-1. So Barcelona still have some momentum to take back to the Camp Nou. These are the odds for who will go through. Barcelona, their favorites to go through in this one. All right. Wednesday is where it all goes down and when it all goes down. Luis, what do you think is going to happen in this one? I would love to know. I'm expecting a Barcelona aggressive. I'm expecting Barcelona, they come now with the high aggression and press that they've been showing lately. I'm expecting Barcelona to dominate the game. I'm expecting Newcastle, of course, going on the counter-tiever, exploiting the spaces and the speed that they go in the wide areas.

1:19:17And I'm expecting Barcelona to go through. But these are the games that are very difficult to call because both teams have got a lot of talent. I think that Barcelona right now, by the momentum they are having, because the team looks strong and focused, I think that they are highly favored playing at home. And we'll have to wait and see. But I think that Barcelona will get the win and will go through. If we see the version of Barcelona that we saw in the second leg of the Copa del Rey against Atletico Madrid at the camp now, with that crowd on top of the players and the players on top of the opposition, then Newcastle is going to have a really, really difficult time.

1:20:00I just don't see how Newcastle survives that. But if Newcastle is looking for reasons to be optimistic, to be hopeful, just watch Sevilla today. Without doing a whole lot, they scored two goals. Without really posing much of a threat, they scored two goals. Barcelona will give you chances. And they gave chances to Newcastle in the first leg. You have to be able to capitalize on those chances. You have to be able to take advantage of those opportunities. Because otherwise, it's a wave after wave after wave after wave of Barcelona on top of you. And you're just not going to be able to hang on. Newcastle has to pose a threat in counterattacking opportunities.

1:20:39If they take advantage of that third man running, of that high line that is going to be available to you, they may have an opportunity. But in order to do that, they have to be able to play out of pressure. I don't think they're able to do that against Barcelona because Barcelona, again, will be on top of them. I think Barcelona goes through. Thanks for listening to our podcast, and we'll see you again tomorrow.

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